Operation Iron Swords - Day 171 - 25 March 2024

Contents

NEW - War Termination NEW - Operations NEW - Operations - Gaza NEW - Operations - Judea-Samaria NEW - Operations - Lebanon NEW - Operations - Syria / Iraq NEW - Operations - Yemen NEW - Operations Maps NEW - By-Standers NEW - Axis of Resistance NEW - Allied for Democracy UPDATED - By the Numbers

“At any point, Hamas could have ended this burgeoning tragedy to
surrender and release every hostage. …
Hamas instigated and owns this humanitarian catastrophe.”
Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA)

The United Nations Security Council has demanded an immediate ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza and the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages as the United States abstained from the vote. The remaining 14 council members voted for the resolution on Monday. The resolution calls for an immediate ceasefire during the month of Ramadan, which began two weeks ago, provided that it “leads to a permanent ceasefire.” It also "demands the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages." The Security Council failed to pass an amendment to the draft ceasefire resolution that includes the phrase a permanent ceasefire.

Earlier Monday, the Israeli news website Ynet quoted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as saying that he would cancel a scheduled delegation visit to Washington if the United States did not use its veto against the proposal calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. A high-level delegation was scheduled to visit Washington to discuss a planned Israeli military operation in the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.

The Prime Minister's Office said after the vote : "The US withdrew from its consistent position in the Security Council where it only a few days ago linked a ceasefire with the release of the abductees (section 1). China and Russia vetoed the previous resolution partly because they supported a ceasefire without the release of the abductees. Russia and China supported the current decision, along with Algeria and other countries."

"The US did not veto today the new version that calls for an unconditional ceasefire on the release of the abductees," added the Prime Minister's Office. "This is a clear retreat from the consistent position of the US in the Security Council since the beginning of the war. This withdrawal hurts both the war effort and the effort to release the abductees, because it gives Hamas hope that international pressure will allow them to accept a ceasefire without the release of our abductees. Prime Minister Netanyahu already made it clear last night that if the US withdraws from its principled position, he will not send the Israeli delegation to the US. In the shadow of the change in the American position, Prime Minister Netanyahu decided that the delegation would not leave."

Even though Netanyahu cancelled the Hanegbi and Dermer delegation, Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant continuing his visit demonstrates that while on the political level ties are strained, at the working, institutional level--e.g. defense establishment - relations continue apace.

The US ambassador to the Security Council said after the abstention: " we fully support some of the critical objectives in this nonbinding resolution. And we believe it was important for the Council to speak out and make clear that any ceasefire must come with the release of all hostages.... we meet during the holy month of Ramadan. This should be a season of peace for Muslim communities around the world, just as October 7, Simchat Torah, should have been a day of peace for Jewish communities. This resolution rightly acknowledges that, during the month of Ramadan, we must recommit to peace. Hamas can do that by accepting the deal on the table. A ceasefire can begin immediately with the release of the first hostage. And so, we must put pressure on Hamas to do just that."

John Kirby, spokesman for the US National Security Council, said after the vote on the resolution: "Today we abstained in the UN Security Council. Our vote does not indicate a change in policy. We have always said that we are in favor of a ceasefire hand in hand with the release of hostages. We did not support it because there was no condemnation of Hamas in the proposal."

The US State Department said that Israel bears responsibility for investigating violations of the laws of war, commenting on the Israeli army’s targeting and killing of 4 Palestinian civilians after following them with a drone in the Gaza Strip. This came in a statement by a US State Department spokesman to Anadolu Agency, commenting on the exclusive scenes shown by Al Jazeera, showing the Israeli drone tracking the four civilians before killing them with missiles it fired at them.

The spokesman said that they "have not yet confirmed the authenticity of the scenes," but he expressed his great concern about them, and confirmed that he had requested more information from Israeli officials about them. The spokesman added that Israel "bears responsibility to investigate violations of the laws of war." He stressed the need for the Israeli authorities to expose those responsible and punish them in this context. He also stressed the need to prevent similar violations from occurring again.

Al Jazeera channel showed exclusive scenes showing an Israeli drone targeting 4 Palestinian civilians in the Al-Sika area in the city of Khan Yunis, south of the Gaza Strip. The scenes were reportedly taken from an Israeli drone that was shot down in Khan Yunis at the beginning of last February. They show the four young Palestinian men being pursued by the drone while they were unarmed and targeted with several missiles. Two of them were martyred with the first missile, then the third was martyred, and then the fourth was martyred with two other missiles.

According to a report by Al Jazeera correspondent Salam Khader, this area has witnessed Israeli bombing and military operations since the start of the incursion into the Southern Governorate early last December. The scenes show young men walking - seemingly searching for their homes or what remains of them - among rubble left by aircraft and occupation shells, on a road that was swept away by occupation vehicles before they withdrew from it by land. It is clearly shown from the clip that the four civilians do not carry weapons and do not pose any danger.

War Termination

Israeli officials, on Sunday, gave an opportunity to reach an agreement with Hamas, under which hostages held in the Gaza Strip would be released, after reports indicated that Israel had “softened its position” on Palestinian prisoners, and may be willing to release larger numbers than discussed. Until now, according to the Times of Israel. An Israeli official said in an exclusive statement to the Times of Israel newspaper, without revealing his identity: “At the present time, the chances of reaching an agreement are 50/50.”

During the talks, Israel accepted the latest American proposal, another Israeli official told the same newspaper on Sunday, which has since been sent to Hamas. The official did not mention what the proposal included, but reports indicated that Israel was prepared to double the number of security prisoners who would be released in exchange for 40 hostages, including women, children, the sick, and the elderly, during the first phase of a 6-week truce agreement.

According to a report published by Israeli Channel 12, Israel "is now prepared to release up to 800 Palestinian prisoners, including 100 prisoners convicted of murder." Other Hebrew media reports indicated that Israel "is prepared to release 700 Palestinian security prisoners in exchange for 40 hostages." The framework agreement that Israel agreed to in talks that took place in the French capital, Paris, last month, includes preparations to release 400 security prisoners, in the first phase of the agreement.

An Israeli official told The Times of Israel, “The main sticking point in the talks is the number of high-value prisoners that Israel will release in exchange for female Israeli soldiers” who are being held hostage. Citing an unnamed high-ranking source close to the talks, Channel 12 reported that the country “offered the return of 2,000 Gazans daily to the northern Strip, starting two weeks after the agreement entered into force and the temporary ceasefire was established.”

Mossad chief David Barnea, the most senior Israeli official involved in the talks, returned from Qatar late Saturday night, along with Shin Bet security director Ronen Bar and Israel Defense Forces man Nitzan Alon, although a team remained behind. A lower level handles technical details in the Gulf country. CIA Director William Burns also left Doha, a source familiar with the talks told AFP.

Senior Hamas official, Hussam Badran, added a new condition to ceasefire and hostage release negotiations while delinking a hostage release from a deal, according to a statement on Monday reported by Palestinian and Arab media. "Our priorities are stopping the aggression, bringing in aid, the return of the displaced, and a clear reconstruction plan, and not limited to the release of prisoners as promoted by the occupation," the Hamas officials was quoted as saying, referring to 134 hostages, including children as young as one-years-old as "prisoners." The latest statement by Badran indicated that Hamas increased its demands, with a new condition for a "clear reconstruction plan" in Gaza.

A leading source in the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) denied to Al Jazeera the validity of Israeli media leaks that spoke of concessions and compromises offered to the movement. In his statements, the leader described these Israeli leaks as miserable propaganda aimed at covering up the intransigence of the Israeli government and evading responsibility for obstructing the agreement before the families of its prisoners. The source confirmed that the movement clarified its “irreversible” position, which is that there will be no exchange of prisoners while the aggression, massacres, and siege on the Gaza Strip continue.

The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation had quoted an Israeli official as saying that the Israelis were ready to make major concessions in order to conclude a deal to recover the prisoners. She added that the meeting of Mossad chief David Barnea with members of the mini-ministerial council in Israel, which was scheduled for Sunday evening, was canceled under the pretext of waiting for Hamas’ response to the proposals presented by Israel in order to complete an exchange deal. The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation also quoted sources as saying that there are disagreements within the Israeli technical staff regarding whether Hamas is interested in reaching an agreement.

It quoted a senior Israeli official as saying that Israel had agreed to an American proposal for a compromise solution with Hamas regarding the deal, and was awaiting the movement’s response within two days, according to Israeli estimates. The official also said that a solution could be reached regarding the northern Gaza Strip , with optimism regarding the issue of the return of residents.

The broadcasting authority indicated that the Israeli delegation, headed by the head of the Mossad, returned to Israel from the Qatari capital, Doha, after consulting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majid Al-Ansari said last Tuesday that the ongoing round of negotiations in Doha had resumed a few days ago with all its tracks, and had moved to the stage of technical meetings. Indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel are taking place in conjunction with the ongoing battles throughout the Gaza Strip, and the continuing pressure on Netanyahu to complete an exchange deal.

Israel has agreed to release between 700 and 800 Palestinian terrorists as part of a hostage deal, Hebrew-language media reported Sunday evening, citing Israeli officials. Hamas, the Palestinian terrorist group holding over 100 Israelis in Gaza, will release 40 hostages. The terrorists earmarked for release by Israel include hundreds serving life sentences for murdering Israelis, according to Walla News. Israel gave a clean answer on hostage release and ceasefire negotiations in Doha, agreeing to a Washington-initiated compromise, and the mediators were awaiting an answer from Hamas, the Israeli Channel 12 News reported. Mossad chief David Barnea reportedly returned to Israel on Sunday morning, after having been in Qatar negotiating over the weekend, and a delegation remained in Doha as part of the talks.

The points of agreement were listed as the number of prisoners and a willingness to negotiate over the return of Gazans to northern Gaza. Israel reportedly agreed to a “significantly greater” number of Palestinian prisoners to be released than a proposal plan formulated in Paris, as well “flexibility” regarding the issue of the northern Gaza Strip, which Hamas had set as a condition for a deal.

"The progress on this issue is dramatic for us," senior Israeli official told Channel 12’s Yaron Avraham, adding "Now the question is if Hamas will understand that Israel also has red lines or if it will climb higher trees. If the answer is an absolute ‘no’ then the negotiations will enter into a crisis." "The teams are working non-stop. Everyone is fully deployed in Doha. There is no sense of positivity and euphoria. The feelings are ‘not particularly great’. But nevertheless - we are working and ready for a response from Hamas and then we will know more,” the same source concluded.

Amid warnings of the possibility of famine in the Gaza Strip, and Israel's refusal to play the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) any role in delivering food aid to northern Gaza, reports have emerged of Israel considering arming the Palestinian tribes in the Strip and holding them responsible for distributing aid. Analysts contacted by Al-Hurra website confirmed that this idea is “complicated and far from reality,” pointing out the possibility of using this weapon primarily against Israel, in light of the great “feelings of hatred” left by the current war in Gaza.

The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation said, on Sunday, that security authorities in Israel were “discussing the issue of distributing weapons to local leaders and tribes in the Gaza Strip, for the sake of self-defense, after they were exposed to daily threats, following Israeli security officials communicating with them in order to assume responsibility for managing the Strip instead.” From the Hamas movement. The official body indicated that the goal of the step comes because "without armed groups in the Gaza Strip other than Hamas, it will not be possible to create a governing alternative to regulate the distribution of humanitarian aid."

The Palestinian analyst, Ayman Al-Raqab, said in an interview with Al-Hurra website that this proposal is an attempt to create “a state of chaos in Gaza,” adding: “Talk about providing weapons aims to create a clash between Hamas and the tribes, which is something that will not happen because the problem is not in Weapons are not only present in Gaza, but people accept them.” He continued: "It is an attempt by Israel to show that it can create a force against Hamas and the Palestinian factions, and I think it is illogical and unrealistic."

The Broadcasting Corporation report explained that the issue of arming residents of Gaza or local leaders in the Strip, and who will manage it after the war, will be raised during the meeting of Defense Minister Yoav Galant with his American counterpart, Lloyd Austin, during his visit to the United States in the coming hours. The report added, "It is possible that the Americans will agree to provide weapons to tribal leaders in Gaza... with Israel's approval." For its part, the American newspaper "Wall Street Journal" reported on Thursday that Israeli officials "are working to develop a plan to distribute aid in the Gaza Strip, which could ultimately lead to the creation of a vision of a Palestinian-led governing authority in Gaza."

Commenting on these reports, Israeli analyst Eli Nissan said that the issue of arming the tribes is “complicated,” noting that “there were attempts by Israel to give the large tribes in Gaza control, but Hamas threatened the latter.” A senior Israeli defense official held talks in Egypt, the UAE and Jordan, to mobilize regional support as part of efforts to recruit officials without ties to Hamas to distribute aid, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The American newspaper quoted Israeli and Arab officials as saying that “some of the aid will enter by land and sea” after the Israeli inspection, and will go to large warehouses in central Gaza, where Palestinians will then distribute it. Officials explained that when the war ends, "they will assume responsibility for governance, with the support of security forces funded by wealthy Arab governments."

The Pentagon announced that an American ship loaded with heavy equipment and supplies for building a temporary dock to transport aid to the Gaza Strip left, on Thursday, from the state of Virginia towards the Mediterranean Sea. For his part, Jihad Al-Harazin, professor of political science at Al-Quds University, pointed out that the idea of ??arming Palestinian tribes and families in Gaza “is not achievable, because the tribes will not accept being police serving the occupation army or being affiliated with it.” But he pointed out in his speech to Al-Hurra that the matter would be different “if it came as a mandate from the PLO or the Palestinian leadership, then there would be acceptance,” and he stressed that Israel’s arming of them “is something that cannot be accepted and I do not think that families or tribes will accept it.”

The Israeli efforts sparked threats of retaliation from Hamas, with the movement calling anyone working with the Israelis a "traitor" and threatening to kill them. In recent days, several Palestinian families who were previously thought to be open to the idea have withdrawn, according to the Wall Street Journal. A Hamas security official said in a statement on March 10, shortly after the Israeli efforts began: “Accepting communication with the occupation forces by heads of families and tribes to work in the Gaza Strip is considered national treason, and is something we will not allow.”

Hamas views the emerging Israeli plan as a means to create an independent governance structure. The Hamas security official said: “We will strike with an iron fist anyone who tampers with the internal front in the Gaza Strip, and we will not allow new rules to be imposed.”

Al-Raqab, for his part, believed that if weapons were provided to Palestinians in Gaza, they might use them against Israel, “and that is after the hate industry in Gaza, as there is no family in the Gaza Strip that has not lost one of its sons... The scale of hatred is very large and is increasing day by day.” Regarding the possibility of the idea turning against Israel and the possibility of using weapons against it, Nissan told Al-Hurra: “All things are possible, but if these families actually thought about their future and the interest of the people in Gaza... they would not do that.”

He also pointed out that there are Israeli efforts to break the power of Hamas, which tries from time to time to show that it still exists, explaining that if Israel succeeds in this mission, it will "encourage families to take over the management of matters in the Gaza Strip."

The delay in the arrival of land aid was compensated for by airdrops and by sending aid recently from Cyprus via a sea corridor that began recently. With little to no infrastructure, a charity recently established a temporary pier on the Gaza beach to handle incoming aid. The United States plans to create a "temporary port" to bring aid to shore.

The US National Security Council's chief of staff, Curtis Reed, said last week, "The US military is doing everything in its power to accelerate (building) this capability, and to operate it before the May 1 target date that we have set." He added to reporters on the sidelines of a conference in Cyprus: “They are working hard to make progress on it, and we hope that we will be able to see it in operation before then.”

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) announced that Israel had informed it that it would not agree again to send the UN agency food convoys to the northern Gaza Strip. Reed stated that "there are no plans to land American military personnel on the beach," when asked about how the operation would proceed inside Gaza. He added that Israel will play an important role in securing a large area, and that the United States is talking with “a number of countries” about the possibility of assuming the role of a security partner within the borders of the complex that the Israelis will secure.

He also explained that a United Nations agency would likely distribute the aid, and that "UNRWA will continue to be used in the near future." Commenting on securing and distributing aid, Al-Raqab said: “We need police for security, but there is no proposal on how to provide a police force. So far, Israel may provide it, which seeks in the future to have a civilian force receive and distribute aid, but that may happen later in the future.” There are representatives of the families, but it is too early to talk about that now.”

In turn, Al-Harazin stressed that “the only party capable of this is UNRWA, as it has a staff of employees who can deliver aid, and it is an agency that enjoys international protection and a UN mandate to work. No other party can replace UNRWA.” UNRWA announced, on Sunday, that Israel had informed it that it “will not agree again” to send the UN agency food convoys to the northern Gaza Strip.

UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said: “The Israeli authorities have informed the United Nations that they will no longer approve the entry of any UNRWA food convoys into the north,” adding in a post on the X platform: “This is disgraceful and indicates deliberate obstruction of life-saving aid in the midst of famine.” man made". The Israeli newspaper Haaretz indicated in a report on Sunday that one of the main points of contention during the ongoing ceasefire negotiations is that Hamas is demanding that UNRWA be responsible for distributing aid.

The report explained that Hamas considers UNRWA “the only one capable of receiving and distributing aid immediately,” but Israel opposes any organization “linked to Hamas” being responsible for humanitarian aid, which UNRWA denies.

Operational Update

IDF Reserve Major General Yitzhak Brik explained in an article published by Maariv newspaper that entering the Rafah camps could lead to three disastrous results. The first relates to the possibility of the outbreak of a multi-sided regional war, and the second threatens the loss of peace with Egypt if the fighting becomes entangled on the Egyptian border. He pointed out that the third result is an increase in the risk of killing all Israeli prisoners in the Gaza Strip, stressing that the military operation in Rafah is a “very dangerous” gamble and should not be undertaken, as it may be the final nail in the coffin of Israeli survival.

And he said; "Today it has become clear to everyone that the complete destruction of Hamas is the choice of Netanyahu and his followers," indicating that in the name of the illusion with which they deceive the public regarding the complete destruction of Hamas, the political level creates obstacles to the release of prisoners. He stated that the leadership, which has lost its direction, is afraid of ending the war, for fear that it would harm Netanyahu’s rule as prime minister, and the result would be neither a complete victory over Hamas, nor the release of all prisoners. He continued, saying: If all the prisoners, alive or dead, are not released, at least, the war will remain engraved in the minds of public opinion, as a miserable failure.

Brik stressed that the failure came not only because of the surprise attack launched by Hamas on October 7, but also because of the Israeli army’s attack on the Gaza Strip, which did not achieve the two main goals of the war, which were defeating Hamas and releasing the prisoners. He added, "This will be the worst failure that the people of Israel have suffered in all their wars, from the founding of the Jewish state to the present day."

He noted that Netanyahu's talk about the collapse of Hamas after the elimination of its four brigades in Rafah is a very dangerous lie, noting that the US Secretary of State informed the Israeli War Council that "Israel's security and international standing are in danger." According to the Israeli general’s assessment, entering Rafah is a double-edged sword, and its harm exceeds its benefit dozens of times, believing that “entering Rafah is a bet on Israel’s security, because it may explode its relationship with the United States, which is already very fragile today, and will increase the entire world’s boycott of Israel.” He concluded by saying: "There is no relationship between the Israeli army's control of Rafah, the destruction of the surrounding infrastructure, and the ability of Hamas members to continue fighting as guerrillas," adding that "until the moment, the political level does not have any plan for how to replace Hamas' civilian rule in Gaza."

Operational Update - Gaza

Political analysts who spoke to the https://www.aljazeera.net/ program “Gaza...what next?” believe that The American administration has become convinced that the military approach adopted by Israel will not succeed in eliminating the Palestinian resistance, and that continuing the war harms the interests of the United States and its ally.

In this context, Palestinian writer and political analyst Ahmed Al-Haila believes that the United States is convinced that eliminating the Islamic Resistance Movement ( Hamas ) is an unrealistic goal, and what was indicated in a US intelligence report, part of which was presented to Congress, which also made clear that if Israel insists on... Using military force in what you call the elimination of Hamas will take years and cost it dearly.

The American administration warns the Israeli occupation - the spokesman adds - that continuing the path of military force and killing the Palestinians and committing genocide against them will lead to the erosion of the credibility and image of Israel and the United States at the same time before their people and in front of international forums. Therefore, Washington is trying to persuade the Israelis to modify their behavior and stop the idea of judiciary. On Hamas and the Palestinian resistance inside the Gaza Strip.

For his part, academic and expert on Israeli affairs Muhannad Mustafa confirms that Washington has come to believe that the military approach adopted by Israel cannot achieve its goal of eliminating the Hamas movement, indicating that there is a gradual and slow escalation in American policy towards Israel, which was evident in the imposition of sanctions. On settlers and calling for elections in Israel.

According to Israeli Channel 13, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said before the Israeli War Council, in what appeared to be a definitive conclusion to any argument regarding the Rafah operation, that Hamas will remain even if you attack Rafah. The United States has become convinced that the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip is harming its interests and the interests of its ally, Tel Aviv, in terms of its regional and international repercussions.

In contrast to the American approach that also rejects the invasion of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu - adding the academic and expert - insists on moving forward with his plan for a military attack on Rafah , because for him this operation represents a matter of life or death, as Muhannad Mustafa says.

In this context, former US State Department official William Lawrence acknowledges that the US administration is a partner and complicit in what is happening in Gaza, but it has begun to understand that it helped cause what is happening in the Gaza Strip, and that Netanyahu is working against Israel’s interests, which was stated by US officials, including US Senator and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, who said that Netanyahu is an obstacle to peace. He concluded, "The American administration concluded that Israel is waging war against Palestinian civilians and not against Hamas." Regarding American aid to Israel, Lawrence said that cutting it would not be easy or quick before ending the war, explaining that the US Congress would threaten to start cutting off weapons from Tel Aviv and put pressure on the White House in this regard.

On the other hand, the Palestinian writer and political analyst Al-Hila raises questions about what is happening in the Gaza Strip, and says that there are faltering negotiations taking place due to the occupation’s adherence to the same noes, and at the same time there are preparations for an attack on Rafah, and there are military measures and changes taking place in the Gaza Strip towards the waterway. Introducing an alternative authority in the sector.

Al-Haila expressed his belief that the Americans and Israelis are trying to create a fait accompli policy that would lead to the Gaza Strip being managed differently from the current reality, and he did not rule out the possibility of American pressure on Israel to present a political approach in this context. It is noteworthy that indirect negotiations between Hamas and Israel are continuing in the Qatari capital, Doha, in conjunction with the ongoing battles throughout the Gaza Strip, and the continuing pressure on the Israeli Prime Minister to complete an exchange deal.

The official Israeli broadcaster, Kan, said that the security establishment is considering distributing pistols and weapons to local leaders and tribal sheikhs in Gaza for the purpose of self-defense. The Commission stated that this came after these leaders were exposed to threats to their lives, as Israeli security officials approached them for the purpose of replacing Hamas officials. She indicated that the position of the security establishment states that without the armed groups in Gaza that do not belong to Hamas, it is not possible to create an authoritarian alternative to Hamas, which, according to the report, is trying to regain control in northern Gaza and the center of the Strip.

She explained that the issue of arming Gazans and local leaders in Gaza, as well as the issue of who will control Gaza the day after the war, will be raised in the meeting between Security Minister Gallant and US Defense Secretary Walid Austin. The official authority indicated that the Americans may agree to bring these pistols themselves after permission from Israel and the tribal sheikhs whom Tel Aviv has approved in advance.

The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas movement, said on Monday that it had bombed the city of Ashdod in southern Israel with missiles in response to what it described as targeting civilians, according to what was reported by the Arab World News Agency. The Israeli army confirmed in a brief statement that sirens sounded in Ashdod, while Israeli media said that this was the first time that missiles had been launched towards the city in more than two months. The Israeli Broadcasting Authority said that at least 4 missiles were fired from the northern Gaza Strip towards the city of Ashkelon in southern Israel, and alarms were activated in the city. The Authority added that 3 missiles were intercepted, while one missile landed in an open area.

IDF’s Nahal Brigade located and raided a drone manufacturing laboratory which served various factions in Gaza, as well as encountering terrorists outside the building and eliminating them.

The Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad movement in Palestine, announced that it bombed enemy concentrations in the vicinity of the Al-Shifa Complex, west of Gaza City, with 60-caliber regular mortar shells. Al-Quds Brigades broadcast scenes of what it said were rocket and mortar shell attacks targeting settlements around the Gaza Strip and the Israeli occupation forces in the Al-Taqaddum axis, west of Gaza City. The scenes showed Al-Saraya fighters targeting military sites and settlements around the Gaza Strip. As stated in the video, the fighters targeted a logistics and security equipment facility inside Kibbutz Nahal Mouz and the Iron Dome system.

The Al-Alam News Network, Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting. reported the occupation forces continued their war against the hospitals of the Gaza Strip. Seven days after occupying Al-Shifa Hospital, the occupation forces besieged Al-Amal Hospital, affiliated with the Palestinian Red Crescent, as a result of which a paramedic and a displaced person were martyred. They besieged Nasser Hospital and killed a number of the displaced. The occupation tanks again entered the Western Camp and Al-Amal neighborhood and reached Al-Aqsa University near Mawasi Khan Yunis.

Paramedics recovered the bodies of four citizens from the town of Al-Qarara, northeast of Khan Yunis, and a number of citizens from the Al-Mawasi area.

In Rafah, the occupation army bombed five homes within 24 hours, leading to the death of 27 Palestinians and the injury of dozens. the death toll in the central Gaza Strip rose to ten martyrs after the occupation bombed the home of the Salman family in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. The occupation artillery also bombed the Nuseirat and Al-Bariya camps in the central Gaza Strip.

In the northern Gaza Strip, Israeli occupation forces continue to storm Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City for the eighth day in a row, while continuing bombings inside the complex. The occupation army also continued to destroy residential squares in the vicinity of Al-Shifa Hospital and force its residents to move south. In addition, there were martyrs and wounded when two homes of the Salem family were targeted by an Israeli air strike on the Beach camp, west of Gaza City. Likewise, three martyrs were killed in a bombing carried out by the occupation targeting members of a tribal committee that provides aid near the Kuwait roundabout in Gaza. As for Beit Hanoun, two Palestinians were martyred after the occupation targeted the people.

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, Reem Al-Salem, expressed her concern about the increasing cases of rape committed by occupation soldiers against women in Gaza. Al-Salem explained in a post on the “X” platform that it is disgusting that these cases continue in the Gaza Strip , which has been subjected to a devastating Israeli war for 6 months. She stressed that rape and other types of sexual violence could be considered war crimes, crimes against humanity, or behavior that may constitute genocide. The UN rapporteur called for an immediate halt to cases of violence against Palestinian women.

Al Jazeera columnist and former managing director Yasser Abuhilalah acknowledged “through Hamas investigations” that a story which the Qatari broadcaster aired was fabricated, and Israeli soldiers did not rape women at Shifa hospital as was alleged. While Al Jazeera itself issued no formal correction, retraction or acknowledgement, all the content related to the allegation were reportedly removed from the Qatari broadcasting channel. “It was revealed through Hamas investigations that the story of the rape of women in Al-Shifa Hospital was fabricated,” Abuhilalah wrote on X, yet accusing Israel of “genocide.”

“The woman who spoke about rape justified her exaggeration and incorrect talk by saying that the goal was to arouse the nation’s fervor and brotherhood,” the Al Jazeera columnist explained, adding “As if more than thirty thousand martyrs, ninety thousand wounded, about a million displaced people, and comprehensive destruction were not enough!”

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz stressed that such reports get taken seriously by the United Nations, and called out Secretary-General Antonio Guterres for his bias against Israel. “Look surprised, the Palestinians fabricate stories of rape to incite anti-Semitism,” Katz posted on X. “Guterres, I'm sure that's sad for you to hear, but that's the reality.”

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman in Arabic, Lieutenant Colonel Avichay Adraee, earlier denied the claims and efforts were being made to deny this "fake news.” "After failing on all counts, Hamas megaphones and propaganda have invented a new lie," he said in a video posted on X, also accusing "the Al-Jazeera channel and Hamas mouthpieces" of trying "in vain to pass off the face of ISIS-Hamas as beautiful after October 7 and the massacres, rapes and arson they perpetrated.”

Operational Update - Judea-Samaria

Large numbers of settler occupiers stormed, Monday morning, the courtyards of the Blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque, under the protection of the occupation police, on the second day of the Jewish holiday of Purim. The raids began from the Mughrabi Gate, reaching the eastern and northern courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque. The second day of the storming of the Jewish Purim holiday witnessed an increase in the number of stormers, as the storming began at seven in the morning, with an increase in the number of occupation police and officers present in the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque, some of whom were stationed at the path of the cup.

The occupation forces forcibly evacuated the square opposite the Al-Qibli prayer hall and the courtyard of the Dome of the Rock, and removed two young men who were sitting on the terrace in the vicinity of the Al-Qibli prayer hall, and two young women from the mosque. At dawn, the gates of Al-Aqsa Mosque witnessed military restrictions, and the occupation forces searched the worshipers as they entered to perform the dawn prayer, and in the morning hours, the majority were prevented from entering, coinciding with the colonists’ storming.

The incursions begin from the Mughrabi Gate on foot, along the Al-Qibli prayer area, towards the east of the mosque. In the eastern area, near the wall of the mosque and the Gate of Mercy, the settlers stop for a long time and perform their silent and aloud prayers and other rituals. They also sit on the step adjacent to the wall and listen to the explanations of the guide or the rabbi accompanying them, and then they head along the Bab al-Rahma Road towards the north of the mosque.

Some settlers climb towards the northern sides of the courtyard of the Dome of the Rock and then perform prayers and take pictures, without entering the courtyard of the Dome of the Rock or the covered chapels. Then they continue their storming towards the west of the mosque, along the western portico. The intruders stood for a long time in front of or above the stairs of the Western Baqa and performed their prayers there as well, and some of them drank from the ancient Sabil of Qaytbay.

The storming ends with the settlers leaving Bab al-Silsilah, west of the mosque, singing and walking backwards (with their backs toward the door). After leaving, they stand on the threshold of Bab al-Silsilah, from which the Dome of the Rock can be seen. They perform additional, louder and noisier prayers and dances, then they leave via Bab al-Silsilah Road towards the Old City.

The Chief Rabbinate of the occupying state prohibits Jews from entering Al-Aqsa Mosque or what it calls the “Temple Mount,” due to the failure to fulfill the condition of purity from the impurity of the dead, as they call it waiting for “the Messiah the Savior,” but the Temple groups disagree with this.

Al-Alam TV correspondent in Jenin reported that the occupation forces stormed the city of Nablus this morning, leading to the outbreak of confrontations and the injury of three Palestinian citizens. She added that the occupation stormed several suburbs in the city of Tulkarm and also the town of Qaffin near the city, which led to a child being injured by shrapnel from the occupation bullets after the outbreak of confrontations.

The Al-Alam News Network, Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting. correspondent continued that there were several incursions into Jenin from last night until now, which came after the Jenin Brigade’s statement that it was able to infiltrate the Merav settlement and shoot the settlement. It is noteworthy that the Jenin Battalion, affiliated with the Al-Quds Brigades , announced last night that it had targeted the Merav settlement with heavy bullets and confirmed the withdrawal of its fighters to their bases safely.

Five Palestinians were shot during confrontations with the Israeli army in the northern West Bank yesterday evening, Sunday, and early Monday, as the occupation forces continued to carry out night raids into various towns and cities in the West Bank, including confrontations and arrests. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said in a statement that its ambulance crews dealt with “a live bullet wound to a 16-year-old child in the leg from the village of Qaffin, northeast of Tulkarm , and transferred him to the hospital.”

The Red Crescent also reported that 3 Palestinians were injured by bullets from the occupation forces in the Old City of Nablus. The Red Crescent had previously said that its crews dealt with “a 14-year-old boy injured by live bullets in the foot” during confrontations in the town of Beit Furik, east of Nablus , and transferred the injured person to the hospital. The association indicated that "the ambulance at the Beit Furik checkpoint and the injured young man were detained" before coordinating with the International Red Cross to release them.

Dozens of Palestinians had demonstrated in the village of Beit Furik in solidarity with the resistance and the residents of the Gaza Strip. The demonstrators chanted slogans denouncing what they described as the crimes of the Israeli occupation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip , and calling for support for the Palestinian resistance in the face of Israeli attacks.

The occupation forces continue to carry out daily night raids after the end of Tarawih prayers to prevent worshipers in the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque from secluding themselves, except for Friday and Saturday nights. On Sunday evening, members of the occupation forces stormed the Al-Qibli prayer hall to verify that all worshipers had left it, coinciding with their continuous positioning inside the sanctuary in the Mughrabi Gate , outside it and at the rest of the gates.

Al Jazeera's correspondent said that the Israeli occupation police stormed the Al-Qibli prayer hall in Al-Aqsa Mosque and expelled those in seclusion from it. Thousands of Palestinians flocked to the Blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque to perform the evening and Tarawih prayers, on the night of the middle of the blessed month of Ramadan, while the occupation forces continued their intense deployment at the gates of the Blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque and in the neighborhoods of the Old City. Groups of settlers stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque yesterday morning, Sunday, coinciding with the Jewish celebration of the so-called Purim . The Islamic Endowments estimated the number of intruders at more than 100 Israeli soldiers.

At dawn on Monday, the occupation forces stormed the villages of Azzun and Hajjah, east of Qalqilya, in the northern West Bank. They also stormed the Aqabat Jabr camp in the city of Jericho, as well as the town of Silat al-Dhahr, south of the Jenin camp in the West Bank. The occupation forces stormed the town of Beit Ummar, north of Hebron, and confrontations broke out between Palestinians and the occupation forces in the Al-Aroub camp in Hebron as well. Israeli occupation vehicles were targeted with an explosive device in the town of Arbouna in the Jenin camp in the West Bank.

Meanwhile, Al Jazeera's correspondent reported that confrontations broke out between Palestinian youths and the Israeli occupation forces in the Al-Aroub camp, north of the city of Hebron. Foot soldiers from the occupation army stormed the camp following the targeting of Palestinian youths with Molotov cocktails at the Israeli military tower located at its entrance. They pursued them inside the camp, leading to the outbreak of confrontations with them.

Pictures circulated by activists showed settlers assaulting and provoking citizens in the village of Al-Tayaran in the city of Al-Dhaheriya, south of Hebron. For hours on Sunday morning, settlers carried out provocative tours and performed religious rituals in various areas of Hebron in the south of the West Bank, on the occasion of Purim.

Operational Update - Lebanon

Hezbollah claimed to have fired upon Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers overnight, near the border with Lebanon, southwest of Kiryat Shmona in the Galile. The Israeli military later confirmed 15 launches toward one of its posts but no injuries were reported.

The combat team of the Commando Formation, Givati and the 7th Brigade finished a wide-ranging activity in the Hamed neighborhood, in an operation by Division 98 in cooperation with the Shin Bet, which lasted about ten days. The combat team of the 7th Brigade enabled the evacuation of the population and arrested about 300 terrorists. A combat team of the commando formation raided many dozens of high-rise buildings, eliminated and arrested dozens of terrorists and located weapons of war in many buildings.

As part of the operation led by Division 162 at Shifa' Hospital, Nahal patrol forces eliminated armed terrorists in face-to-face encounters, cleared several buildings inside the hospital, and located many weapons that were hidden in the MRI complex, inside the various medical devices and in the ceiling of the hospital.

An Air Force aircraft attacked two Hezbollah terrorists who were operating in the area of ??Mis al Jabal in southern Lebanon.

IDF Shin Bet and MGB forces operated tonight to arrest seven wanted persons throughout the Judea and Samaria Division. As part of an initiative by soldiers of the Haruv patrol in the village of Arabona in the Menashe division, the force fired at two terrorists who threw explosives at them, hits were detected. In another operation in the area of the Menashe Brigade, the fighters arrested three wanted persons in the village of Jilbon and a wanted person in the village of Shavika.

During the operation of the forces in the village of Elkhader in the area of the Etzion Brigade, the fighters arrested a wanted person who is suspected of throwing Molotov cocktails and in the area of Qalandiya in the area of the Binyamin Brigade, the forces arrested two other wanted persons. The arrested wanted persons were transferred for further investigation by the security forces, there are no casualties to Israeli forces.

So far, since the beginning of the war, approximately 3,600 wanted persons have been arrested throughout the Judea and Samaria Division and the Bekaa and Valleys Division, approximately 1,600 of whom are associated with the terrorist organization Hamas.

The forces of the 13th squadron under the command of the 162nd division continue to operate in Shifaa hospital. The IDF spokesman, Brigadier General Daniel Hagari, in an English-language video distributed to foreign media regarding the activities of IDF forces at Shifa Hospital: "We captured hundreds of terror suspects linked to Hamas or Islamic Jihad, which made the operation one of the most successful operations since the beginning The war. This operation is not over yet.'

Today is day 6 of the IDF's operation against Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Shifa Hospital. 170 terrorists were neutralized in or around the Shifa Hospital compound while firing at Israeli forces. The IDF apprehended hundreds of terror suspects with confirmed ties to Hamas or Islamic Jihad, making this one of the most successful operations since the start of the war. A large number of these terrorists were involved in planning and executing the brutal massacre of October 7.

This operation is not over. Right now, Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorists are barricading themselves inside Shifa hospital wards. Hamas is destroying Shifa hospital. Hamas is firing from inside the Shifa Emergency Room and Maternity Ward and throwing explosive devices from the Shifa Burn Ward. Terrorists hiding around the hospital fired mortars at Israeli forces, causing extensive damage to the hospital buildings. Hamas is firing mortars at the Shifa hospital. Hamas is destroying the Shifa hospital.

Hamas hijacked the Shifa Hospital and hides behind the sick and injured, waging war from inside the Shifa Hospital. The IDF operates with precision and acts with care towards the patients and medical staff inside the hospital. "We do this because we distinguish between Hamas terrorists and the civilians they are hiding behind. We do this because our war is against Hamas, not against the people of Gaza. And our actions prove this."

Since the beginning of this operation against Hamas at Shifa Hospital, the IDF has assisted the sick and wounded and helped move many of them out of harm's way. "We brought dozens of medical devices; over 10 thousand units of medications; hundreds of medical supplies; as well as food, water, and other equipment into Shifa Hospital. When Hamas's attacks resulted in the failure of the hospital generator, our troops helped restore electricity to the hospital. Our operation at Shifa Hospital proves once again: Hamas systematically uses hospitals to wage war and consistently uses the people of Gaza as human shields.""

Contrary to emerging reports, there was no attempt to penetrate Israeli territory in the south of the country, IDF forces are deployed and prepared in the area.

Fighter jets attacked a military structure of the Hezbollah terrorist organization, in the area of Miss Al Jabal, where terrorists were staying. About 15 missiles were identified that crossed the territory of Lebanon towards the IDF post near Menara, which fell in open areas, there were no casualties. A warning was activated in the area according to policy.

The IDF and Shin Bet forces continue targeted fighting in the area of Shifa Hospital. The combat teams of the 401st Brigade and the Nahal Brigade and the 13th Fleet under the command of the 162nd Division are fighting in the area while avoiding harm to civilians, patients, medical teams and medical equipment. The fighters have so far arrested about 500 terrorists who have been verified as being associated with the terrorist organizations Hamas and Islamic Jihad and found weapons in the area.

IDF and Shin Bet fighters led by Division 98 continue raids on terrorist infrastructure in the El Amal area, after having surrounded the area. Over 20 terrorists were killed during the fighting in the area in the last day in encounters and aircraft attacks. The field investigators of Unit 504 and the Shin Bet coordinators have interrogated dozens of suspects in the past day and allowed hundreds of Gazans to leave the area. In the raids carried out by the fighters of the commando formation on a number of terrorist infrastructures in the area, explosives, RPG weapons and military equipment were located.

The battle team of the Nahal Brigade continues to operate in the center of the Gaza Strip and eliminated a number of terrorists throughout the last day. As part of a sniper ambush by the forces, a terrorist was identified coming out and entering from a tunnel shaft near their sector, an aircraft eliminated the terrorist in a short time.

During the last day, fighter jets of the Air Force attacked about 50 terrorist targets throughout the Gaza Strip, including terrorist infrastructures and military buildings. In additional strikes by the Air Force, combat helicopters and aircraft eliminated about 10 terrorists and attacked additional terrorist targets in order to assist the maneuvering forces.

Operational Update - Syria / Iraq

From the beginning of the Al-Aqsa storm operation, the Islamic resistance groups of Iraq, along with other resistance forces in the region, with the two goals of stopping the Zionist regime's encroachment on Gaza and expelling American military forces from Iraq, American positions and bases in Iraq and the region targeted. The resistance groups in support of the Palestinian people started a series of attacks against the support forces of the Israeli army in the region (Centcom terrorists) and the occupied territories. During these attacks, they targeted the bases belonging to the American occupiers in the region and the positions of the Zionist regime army in occupied Palestine using rockets, drones and various missiles.

Iraqi resistance groups after the start of the recent conflicts in the region, in a month and a half after the war in Gaza, at least 2 attacks against Tal Badr base, 6 attacks against al-Shadadi base, 6 attacks against Konko base, 12 attacks against al-Omar base, 6 attacks against Al-Tanf organized 4 attacks against Al-Rimilan base (Kharab Al-Jir), 1 attack against Qasrak base and 1 attack against Al-Maliki base in Syria. In Iraq, the Victory base and the American positions at Erbil airport were targeted 1 time each, Harir airport 10 times, and the positions of the American army at the Ain al-Assad base 16 times were targeted by rocket and drone attacks by the resistance groups. Also, during this period, the Iraqi resistance groups targeted the occupied territories, especially the city of Eilat, with their rocket and drone attacks.

As the main supporter of the Gaza war, the Iraqi resistance axis carried out important military operations against US military bases. One of the target points was the occupied Al-Tanf region, which caused a strong reaction from the United States on the one hand and political pressure on the Iraqi government to prevent continued attacks by Islamic resistance groups against the positions of this Iraqi country and the region on the other hand.

"Sputnik" news agency, quoting a field source in Syria, reported that "Al-Tanf" base in the border triangle of Iraq, Syria and Jordan was attacked with 4 drones. This area is under the control of the US Army. The Central Command of the United States of America (CENTCOM) announced that three soldiers of this country were killed during a drone attack. The Iraqi resistance announced that these operations were carried out as part of the effort against the American occupation in Iraq and in response to the Israeli massacre in Gaza.

The Islamic resistance groups of Iraq offered a number of their senior commanders to the resistance line in defense of the oppressed people of Gaza and expelling the American occupiers from their country in the battle with America.

On February 10th, Iraqi sources announced the attack of unknown drones on a civilian vehicle in the east of Baghdad, after which reports of the martyrdom of several people were published in some media. An hour later, the Kataib Hezbollah resistance group confirmed in a statement that "Abu Baqir Al-Saadi", one of the senior commanders of this group and the Popular Mobilization Organization, was martyred in this American terrorist attack.

Although American attacks on Hashd al-Shaabi bases and resistance forces are not new, this time this action was met with the reaction of the Shiite coordination framework and the Iraqi government was asked to show a favorable reaction to this aggression.

The Shiite Coordination Committee in Iraq, known as "Al-Atar Al-Tansiqi", while condemning the assassination of martyr Abu Baqer Al-Saadi, called for a national and political stance to stop these attacks and declared that the United States had crossed Iraq's red lines and the government should stop its efforts to end these attacks. To continue the mission of the international coalition and its serial and hostile attacks and to maintain the security of citizens.

Following the killing of three American soldiers in a drone attack by resistance groups near the Jordan-Syria border, the Pentagon announced that traces of Kataeb Hezbollah can be seen in these attacks. Although the United States also carried out attacks against the Iraqi resistance groups during this period, which led to the martyrdom of some of the commanders and mujahidin of the resistance, but with their political efforts, they tried to put pressure on the Iraqi government during this time so that it could Reduce the amount of attacks by resistance groups against the American invaders in the region.

In recent months, American political officials held political consultations with regional governments, including Iraqi political officials. US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who has been traveling to the region to consult and reduce pressure on Israel, is trying to persuade America's allies to calm the situation. to accompany him in Gaza. Requesting the Iraqi government to calm down the Iraqi resistance groups that have been attacking American bases since the start of Israel's attack on Gaza was one of the important goals of the US Secretary of State's visit to the region.

Blinken tried to put pressure on the Sudanese government to change its positions on Gaza and on the other hand to stop the attacks of the resistance groups. The Prime Minister of Iraq also started intensive efforts to prevent the escalation of new tensions after the resistance's important attack on occupied Al-Tanf, the least of which was that Kataib Hezbollah announced the temporary suspension of its attacks on American bases in a statement.

For years, the Islamic resistance groups and the Iraqi Popular Mobilization have protected the borders and interests of the Iraqi nation in the conditions of betrayal by some Iraqi mercenaries, but due to the influence of some mercenaries who provided information about the resistance to the American enemy, some of their important commanders have been killed these days.

Sheikh Akram Al-Kaabi, Secretary General of the Iraqi Islamic Resistance Movement of Al-Nujaba, announced in an important message regarding the temporary cessation of attacks by resistance groups: "The current calm is a temporary tactic to reorganize our forces, and it is considered the calm before the storm." Due to the existence of traitors and mercenaries who provided information about our resistance and positions to the enemy, it was necessary to make changes in our structure and formation in order to support our brothers. A surprise is coming and anyone with military knowledge knows what this approach of ours means. Our decision is firm, clear and unequivocal: we will not stop and we will not compromise. We will continue to support Gaza and expel the occupiers from our land. Our chest is hurt by some insiders. "Just when we stand up against the invaders and give blood in this way, they stab us in the side."

Since 2003, Iraqi Islamic resistance groups have supported the Iraqi nation and interests in maintaining the security and stability of this country. After the testimony of the resistance commanders and the decision to expel the American occupying forces and the delay in the implementation of this law, the resistance groups sought to expel the American occupying forces by carrying out military operations. After the Al-Aqsa storm operation, the resistance groups, following their dual goal of defending the oppressed people of Gaza and occupying and expelling the American occupying forces, attacked American bases in Iraq and the region. In fact, the strategic role of the Iraqi Islamic resistance groups after the Al-Aqsa storm will be very decisive in the political arena of this country, and America cannot make a decision for the political future of Iraq without considering the position of the resistance men.

Operational Update - Yemen

A member of the Supreme Political Council in Yemen, Muhammad Ali Al-Houthi, said “Saudi Arabia, as the leader of the aggression after America, to move forward with the issue of peace and proceed with it,” stressing that evasion is not in its interest. Al-Houthi said that the Ansar Allah movement "conveyed a message to Saudi Arabia that it would be a target if it allowed American aircraft to use its lands or airspace in the aggression against Yemen," calling on "the Arab regimes not to allow aircraft to take off from bases in the Arab world or to transfer weapons from those bases to Israel."

He also called on “the Arab and Islamic regimes to reduce the export of petroleum derivatives to Europe and America to 50%,” stressing that “the Arab and Islamic regimes have not come out to date with a clear condemnation of the Zionist aggression against Gaza.” Al-Houthi added: "We are confronting America, Britain, and the Israeli enemy, in support of our brothers in Gaza and supporting them," continuing: "We say to the Americans and the British that your barbaric terrorist strikes are condemnable and a failure."

The people of Saada Governorate gathered in massive public marches to affirm the continuation of Yemeni operations in support of the Palestinian people and to demand an end to the aggression against Gaza. These marches witnessed the participation of Mr. Yahya Badr al-Din al-Houthi, the elder brother of Mr. Abdul-Malik Badr al-Din al-Houthi, the leader of the Ansar Allah movement in Yemen. The participants chanted slogans denouncing the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip and the genocide crimes committed by the occupation against Palestinian civilians.

The Political Editor at the Yemeni News Agency (Saba) wrote: "America and Britain are two colonial countries that built their civilizations from invasions and wars, plundering people’s goods and wealth, exploiting their capabilities and locations, stealing their components, and substituting all of that to serve their colonial interests. They cannot live in peace because that contradicts their formation, which is based on wars, invasions, theft, and plundering of wealth. Therefore, they always seek to provoke The strife and wars they live on and benefit from militarily and economically.

"Today, America and Britain are playing their old, new game of acts of terrorism against the Republic of Yemen through air strikes and missile bombardment on the capital, Sana’a, and a number of governorates, in a desperate attempt to dissuade Yemen from its principled, fraternal, and humanitarian stance on the legitimate struggle of the people of Gaza, who are being subjected to the ugliest American-Western Zionist colonial attack in the country. There remained Arab and Islamic failure to support them and extend a helping hand to them to confront the Zionist-American war machine.

"The Republic of Yemen, from the first day of the Zionist-American aggression on Gaza, decided on its position, which is governed by fraternal, faith and humanitarian principles, and began targeting Zionist ships with marches and ballistic missiles, which led to inflicting a military and economic defeat on the Zionist entity.

"Thus, the Yemeni Navy put an end to the American-Zionist-British orgy in the waters of the Red and Arab Bahrain and the Strait of Bab al-Mandab. This is something that has never happened in modern and contemporary history when a country stood up to these colonial countries that were accustomed to doing what they wanted and ordering and being obeyed.

"A glorious history written by the Republic of Yemen in the conflict with the usurping Zionist entity and its main supporters, America and Britain, in light of an Arab and Islamic reality characterized by humiliation, submission, submissiveness, and the implementation of America’s desires and directives, accepting humiliating normalization, opening Arab air and sea ports to the American, British, and Zionist military forces, and handing them over the capabilities and capabilities of the Arab countries, especially the Gulf states, which Its politics are no longer governed by religion, Arabism, or national constants."

Maps

All maps are lies. “Not only is it easy to lie with maps, it is essential,” wrote cartographer Mark Monmoneir in his book How to Lie with Maps. He showed that condensing complex, three-dimensional spaces onto a two-dimensional sheet of paper [in old days] is bound to be reductive. But it is impossible to comprehend the war in Gaza without reference to maps, otherwise the entire conflict is reduced to an endless series of meaningless acts of random violence and the suffering of civilians. The first characteristic of guerrilla warfare is the loss of a front line. Evidently, different mappers have different ideas of how to depict the war in Gaza, notably those that seek to depict Israeli progress in the ground campaign. Part of the problem is latency. The news that forms the basis of the maps takes time to filter out to mappers, and the cartographers take time in crafting their maps, and it takes time to curate them. These processes are uneven among mappers, so their maps may differ in detail. Probably there is some ideological bias, or at least thematic apperception, which is understandable in wartime. It may come as no surprise that al-Jazeera maps depict rather less Israeli territorial progress than other sources. Finally, there remains the epistemological question of just exactly what are the colored in areas depicting. Naively, this might be understood as areas of Israeli control, that are no longer contested by the HAMAS. Or possibly these are areas of Israeli presence, in many of which the possibility of an RPG-wielding HAMAS militant popping out of a tunnel unexpectedly remains a live possibility. With the "zero-range" combat characterized by small unit tactics on both sides, maps may be prey to a fallacy of misplaced concreteness.

Bystanders

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) announced that Israel had informed it that it “will not agree again” to send the UN agency food convoys to the northern Gaza Strip. UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said on Sunday: “The Israeli authorities have informed the United Nations that they will no longer approve the entry of any UNRWA food convoys into the north,” adding in a post on the X platform: “This is disgraceful and indicates deliberate obstruction of life-saving aid.” In the midst of a man-made famine.

He continued: "These restrictions must be lifted. UNRWA is the largest organization with the most widespread reach and ability to reach displaced communities in Gaza." He also explained that by preventing UNRWA from fulfilling its obligations in Gaza, the situation is getting closer to "famine, and many will die due to hunger, dehydration, and lack of shelter." The agency’s spokeswoman, Juliet Touma, said that the Israeli decision came “after a meeting with Israeli military officials.” She added that it comes after "two written rejections of the passage of a food aid convoy last week towards northern Gaza," stressing that Israel did not provide any justification for this decision. Israel did not respond to AFP's request for comment on Lazzarini's statements.

Touma explained that UNRWA has not been able to deliver food to the north since last January 29, considering that “the latest decision is another nail in the coffin” of efforts to deliver the aid that the people of Gaza who are suffering from the war desperately need.

The Israeli newspaper Haaretz indicated in a report on Sunday that one of the main points of contention during the ongoing ceasefire negotiations is that Hamas is demanding that UNRWA be responsible for distributing aid. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stressed on Sunday the need to strengthen the ability of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) to carry out its role towards the Palestinians, describing the situation in the Gaza Strip as a “humanitarian catastrophe.” The report explained that the movement, which is listed on US terrorist lists, is considered the agency “the only one capable of receiving and distributing aid immediately,” but Israel opposes any organization “linked to Hamas” being responsible for humanitarian aid, which UNRWA denies.

UNRWA, which provides aid and services to Palestinian refugees in Gaza and across the region, has been facing a crisis since Israel accused about a dozen of its employees of participating in the October 7 attack. These allegations prompted the United States, the largest donor to UNRWA, and some other countries to halt funding, which could harm the agency's future. However, countries such as Canada, Australia and Sweden decided to resume funding.

Last week, UNRWA and Egypt said that the Israeli authorities prevented Lazzarini, who was on a visit to Cairo, from entering Gaza. For his part, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, stressed on Sunday the need to strengthen the UN agency’s ability to carry out its role towards the Palestinians, describing the situation in the Gaza Strip as a “humanitarian catastrophe.” Guterres said during a visit to Egypt: “We are working hard to ensure continued support for UNRWA,” noting that many UNRWA workers in the Gaza Strip have been killed. He continued: "The Israeli accusations against us do not affect our work, and we are not against anyone. Rather, we work based on values ??and principles," stressing that "the obstacles do not affect our determination to help the Palestinians."

President Joe Biden's administration insists that "no American employees will set foot" in Gaza during the delivery of humanitarian aid from a floating dock being worked on, but suggesting that employees from other countries carry out this mission carries security risks, according to NBC. American News, about a former official and current officials in the administration.

Although the war that has been ongoing for more than 5 months between Israel and Hamas has led to the destruction of Gaza, aid donations are accumulating in North Sinai, Egypt, with limited quantities entering the Strip through the Rafah border crossing with Egypt and the Israeli Kerem Shalom crossing. As hopes for a truce in Gaza during Ramadan faded, and the risk of famine increased in the coastal enclave, the United States and other countries sought to use airdrops and ships to deliver aid, with Washington deciding to suspend its funding of UNRWA for at least a year.

Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, welcomed the adoption by the UN Security Council of a resolution calling for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip during the month of Ramadan, demanding its implementation on the ground. Ahmed Aboul Gheit said on the “X” platform: “I welcome the Security Council’s recent adoption of a ceasefire resolution in Gaza. The adoption of this resolution has been long overdue, and what is now required is its implementation on the ground.” The Egyptian Foreign Ministry welcomed the ceasefire decision in the Gaza Strip, for the first time since the beginning of the crisis and after several attempts to reach it.

Algeria's representative to the United Nations, Ammar Ben Jama, said that Resolution No. 2728, which the Council adopted regarding the Ramadan ceasefire today, was long overdue, and called on the Security Council to work to implement it. Russia's permanent representative to the United Nations, Vasily Nebenzia, had previously announced Moscow's support for the non-permanent members' document, which is also supported by a group of Arab countries in the United Nations.

Axis of Resistance

Iranian President Seyed Ebrahim Rayeesi described Palestine as the most important issue in the Muslim world, and stressed that the resistance by the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip will lead to changes in the status quo in the world. Addressing a gathering, President Rayeesi condemned the ongoing Israeli war against the besieged enclave, emphasizing the need for immediate international action to address the humanitarian crisis there.

He stated that the blood of Palestinians and their resistance will bring about “a transformation in the unjust order that rules the world”, which he said is “very close and achievable”. Israel has been carrying out heavy bombardment across the Gaza Strip since early October, killing more than 32,300 Palestinians, including thousands of children and women, and wounding 74,700 others, and levelling entire neighbourhoods. Thousands more are missing and feared buried under the rubble.

Tel Aviv has also imposed a complete siege on Gaza, cutting off food, electricity, fuel and water supplies. The move has plunged the blockaded territory into a humanitarian crisis.

A United Nations monitor group had recently cautioned famine conditions now exist in the Northern part of Gaza, around 300,000 people remain trapped in the area, following months of Israeli relentless bombardment. The UN-backed report also warns that more than 70% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million faces “catastrophic hunger". Dozens of children in Gaza, including newborn babies, have starved to death and many more are at risk from soaring malnutrition. The Integrated Food-Security Phase Classification (IPC) estimated that two out of every 10,000 people will die daily from starvation, malnutrition, and disease if not helped immediately. The alarming report came as UN aid agencies have warned that urgently-needed humanitarian aid is being blocked from entering the enclave.

The Hamas movement welcomed the UN Security Council resolution on Monday calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, stressing its readiness to begin an exchange process that would lead to the release of prisoners on both sides. The movement's statement said: "The Islamic Resistance Movement welcomes today's call by the UN Security Council for an immediate ceasefire, and we stress the necessity of reaching a permanent ceasefire that leads to the withdrawal of all Zionist forces from the Gaza Strip, and the return of the displaced to the homes from which they left."

The statement added: “We confirm our readiness to engage in an immediate prisoner exchange process that leads to the release of prisoners on both sides. In the context of the text of the resolution, we emphasize the importance of freedom of movement of Palestinian citizens and the entry of all humanitarian needs for all residents, in all areas of the Gaza Strip, including heavy equipment.” To remove the rubble, so that we can bury our martyrs who have been under the rubble for months.”

The Hamas movement called on the Security Council to "pressure the occupation to adhere to the ceasefire and stop the war of genocide and ethnic cleansing against the Palestinian people." In its statement, Hamas affirmed the right of the Palestinian people to establish their independent, sovereign Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, and the right of return and self-determination, in accordance with international resolutions and international law. The statement concluded: “We appreciate the efforts of the brothers in Algeria and all the countries in the Security Council that supported and support our people, and are working to stop the Zionist aggression and war of annihilation.”

Allied for Democracy

New Hope chair Gideon Sa’ar announced his four-seat party’s departure from the coalition on Monday evening, two weeks after dissolving his political alliance with Benny Gantz, and after his demands to be appointed to the high-level war cabinet were not met. Declaring that his party had not joined the emergency government following October 7 in order to “warm chairs,” Sa’ar stated that, while he had previously set aside his disagreements with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his coalition for “the good of the country,” the government had so far failed to achieve its war aims in Gaza and he felt that he had no ability to influence its prosecution of the conflict. National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said if Sa’ar was added to the war cabinet, he demanded to be brought in too.

Benny Gantz, the leader of the National Unity party, warned against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposed ultra-Orthodox draft law, labeling it a “red line” for his party’s continued participation in the coalition government. The draft law, as outlined by Netanyahu, does not set specific quotas for ultra-Orthodox enlistment but proposes raising the exemption age to 35. It also suggests the formation of special ultra-Orthodox battalions in the IDF and the inclusion of Haredi positions in emergency services and government offices. The Defense Minister, Yoav Gallant, also voiced his opposition, citing a lack of flexibility among coalition members regarding the issue.

Israel Foreign Ministry in UN/Geneva stated "The report published today by the Special Rapporteur on the Palestinian Territories brings shame to the Human Rights Council. It is clear by her previous statements, before and after the October 7 massacre that, under the guise of the UN, the Special Rapporteur continues her campaign of delegitimizing the very creation and existence of the State of Israel.

"Since she took office, the whole premise of the Special Rapporteur’s argument is that the very establishment of the State of Israel was a “colonialist” project, denying both Israel’s right to exist, as well as the historic ties of the Jewish people to the land of Israel. It is therefore no surprise, that the premise of this report is that the creation of the Jewish State in 1948, was an act of “settler colonialism”, and genocide is an “inherent part” of that act.

"Before October 7, the Special Rapporteur accused the Jewish lobby of subjugating America; dismissed Israeli security concerns as paranoia; talked of “Israel’s greed”; compared Israel’s actions of that to the Nazis, and legitimized terrorist actions by Hamas and other terrorist organizations. Since the war, she has continued this campaign unabated, excusing and legitimizing the attacks of October 7, dismissing their antisemitic nature and dismissing any concrete evidence of acts of savagery that were perpetrated on that day.

"It is clear from the report that the Special Rapporteur began with the conclusion that Israel is committing genocide, and then tried to prove her distorted and politically-driven views with weak arguments and justifications.

"The report is therefore an obscene inversion of reality, where a so-called expert can make outrageous accusations, the more extreme the better, that hinges on telling a story in which Hamas, its abuse of civilians and civilians’ infrastructure, and its utter brutality simply disappear. This is clear as she tries to excuse Hamas of using Palestinians as human shields, takes its arguments as facts and takes Hamas death figures as gospel.

"It is hardly surprising that those who have no qualms about distorting the facts, have no hesitation about distorting the law. The very attempt to level the charge of genocide against Israel is an outrageous distortion of the Genocide Convention. It is an attempt to empty the word genocide of its unique force and special meaning; and turn the Convention itself into a tool of terrorists, who have total disdain for life and for the law, against those trying to defend against them.

"As demonstrated in word and deed, Israel’s war is against Hamas, not against Palestinian civilians. This is a matter of explicit government policy, military directives and procedures. It is no less an expression of Israel’s core values. As stated, our commitment to uphold the law, including our obligations under international humanitarian law, is unwavering.

"Israel utterly rejects the report. It is simply an extension of a campaign seeking to undermine the very establishment of the Jewish State. Instead of seeking the truth, this Special Rapporteur tries to fit weak arguments to her distorted and obscene inversion of reality. It is yet another stain on her biased mandate, and only brings the Human Rights Council further into disrepute. "

The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation "Kan" reported that Israel is trying to find alternative ways to obtain combat means and raw materials to overcome the gaps that have arisen in the vital components required for combat. A security official said, “The increasing criticism and delegitimization by various parties puts Israel’s continued arming and transfer of ammunition and weapons at risk,” noting that “the tension with the United States over the operation in Rafah and the humanitarian issue in Gaza will also affect the American willingness to continue assisting Israel with the same.

The authority added that officials in Israel are "trying to find alternative bypass methods to obtain weapons and ammunition to fill the shortage of vital ammunition necessary to continue the fighting," without clarifying those methods. The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation reported, "There are countries that have stopped providing combat ammunition to Israel as part of their quiet boycott, while other countries have announced that they are committed to their laws that do not allow the sale of weapons to countries in conflict." It also pointed out that "there are other countries that leave Israel waiting for these supplies to be approved."

The Broadcasting Corporation reported that Italy has expressed its unwillingness to sell weapons to the Israeli Navy, and France and Germany are threatening a similar ban, in addition to the global ammunition shortage crisis due to the arms race between the major powers. On March 20, Canada announced that it would ban arms sales to Israel after the Canadian Parliament voted by a majority of 204 votes to 117 in favor of a non-binding proposal to stop arms sales after a long debate.

i24 news channel said that there are indeed countries today that do not provide weapons to Israel, and are implementing a “quiet boycott,” and others have announced that they are restricted by the country’s laws that do not allow them to sell weapons to countries in conflict, and others are keeping Israel waiting for approvals to be issued. For example, Italy is not willing to sell weapons to Israel for Navy ships, nor is Canada, which supplied Israel with subcomponents such as electronic cards, biochips of various types, and dozens of subcomponents that are also used in Iron Dome.

While France and Germany threaten to boycott and stop the supply of military equipment, in addition to this there is also a global shortage of ammunition due to the global arms race when all countries of the world are preparing themselves. The official told Kan: “There are no stocks in Europe, everyone is keen to buy more advanced means,” adding: “There is still aid daily arriving by Israeli air train, but the big fear is that the tension over the humanitarian issue and entry into Rafah will affect "The American willingness to provide security assistance to Israel." He pointed out, "At the beginning of the war, shipments arrived at a very fast pace, but now they are taking much longer. We are well aware of the United States' frustration with the conduct of the war , although I am not sure what the reason is," revealing that "there is a shortage of 155-caliber artillery shells." mm, as well as 120 mm tank shells.

Hussein Ibrahim, writing in Al Akhbar newspaper, suggested that "Israel never left the era of right-wing gangs, even when the left was in power. David Ben-Gurion, who covered the actions of those gangs led by people like Menachem Begin and Yitzhak Shamir, was no less a Zionist than Benjamin Netanyahu, who today not only covers extremists like Itamar Ben-Gvir, but also shares their extremism, if not extremism.

”This history refuses to leave the minds of Israeli leaders for a single moment , who always link what happened in the past to what is happening now. In addition to it, the global dimension appears in the entity's daily policy, as it is the main factor in Israel's power, meaning its influence in the world. Gangs and money have always been the main working tools of the Zionist movement in Palestine and the world from its inception in 1897 until today, through the establishment of the state in 1948.

”Gangs played the primary role in displacing Palestinians, and at the same time exercised great influence in Israeli politics long before the right came to power. The latter was and is still prepared to kill Israelis for this. This is what happened with Yitzhak Rabin, whom Netanyahu is considered one of the instigators of his murder. The latter inherited extremism from his father, who was Vladimir Jabotinsky's partner in the "Beitar" movement, which presented itself in the 1930s as a "reformist trend" in the Zionist movement, and from it emerged the "Herut" movement, and then "Likud."

”This leads to talk about the harshness with which enemy leaders treat their major allies in the world, such as the Americans and the British, which involves first a humiliating challenge, then waiting for open support for nothing in return. They assume that Western governments are part of a system that owes its existence to the money provided by the Zionist movement.

”Last Friday, the Israeli website "Ynet" published news about an official British request to visit prisoners from the Gaza Strip, which Israel rejected. A senior Israeli security official was quoted as saying, “The British mandate ended in 1948, and we can manage our affairs without British weapons,” in response to the possibility that London would cut off arms supplies to “Israel.”

”On the same day, Netanyahu rejected a request from US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, to stop the planned Rafah operation, and also said that “Israel” would proceed with the operation without American support, also in direct response to a veiled American threat about the possibility of stopping military support for “Israel.” If this process continues without coordination with Washington.

”After October 7, the Israelis began to act on the assumption that the foundations of the state were shaky, and it became necessary to make fundamental changes in its structure, meaning that the state is in the process of establishing a second stage that requires bulldozing and displacement operations of the kind that are taking place in Gaza currently. This explains Netanyahu's insistence on proceeding with the Rafah operation, regardless of its risks.

”It does not seem possible to make bargains such as stopping the Gaza war in exchange for normalization with Saudi Arabia, or refraining from invading Rafah at the risk of endangering the “Camp David Accords.” For him, “Camp David” is a need for the Egyptian regime, and normalization is a need for the Saudi rulers, and he does not have to pay prices for them, even if “Israel” benefits from them.

”It seems that the issue is not limited to extremists in the government, but is accepted by the Israeli public. The opponents are a few who are unable to influence the decision, as well as to escape from under the grip of Netanyahu, who brought some of them to the war council as a front and nothing more. The latter is based on the fact that the Knesset opposed, with 99 votes to 9, the “two-state solution,” even if the Palestinian state that the West intends is a state in name only.

”Perhaps the founders of Israel were right when they thought that they could proceed with their projects without making concessions. The founding period witnessed debates similar to those that occur today. But for the current leaders to derive their determination from that past, this is missing a basic link, which is that the current enemies are different from them in the past. Therefore, it may become clear this time that the West is right in its view of how to lift Israel from the hole into which it has fallen.

”The Arabs, during the establishment of the entity and after it, were only somewhat unanimous in their hostility to it, and there were and still are among them many regimes whose existence is linked to the West and “Israel.” This duality between the actual position and the declared position was harmful to the Palestinian cause. Now, the Arabs, as regimes and forces, are openly divided between an ally of the enemy and a fighter, which is better. As for Israel, it is currently clashing with the whole world, from heads of state to university students. It leaves no corner on the globe without pursuing those who oppose it. As the Israeli press faces harsh censorship in covering the events of Gaza, it devotes its space to these phenomena.

”The Western pressure that we are currently seeing on “Israel” has one goal, which is to overthrow the Netanyahu government and bring in a government that is more responsive to the interests of the West. But this is not an easy task; The West cannot turn Netanyahu's back, because the latter has tight control over the ruling coalition, while there is not enough internal pressure to go to early elections. Also, for Netanyahu in these circumstances, obedience to the Americans is the real recipe for the coalition’s disintegration, not opposing and challenging them.

”However, what the enemy prime minister is mistaken in his assessment is that he is facing resistance that is proving, day after day, unbreakable, and that his performance in the field and the global popular sympathy for Palestine are what can bring him down, and it may not help him much this time to force Western governments to follow Israel.”

Some Arab media outlets considered the statements of Kamala Harris, US Vice President, in the interview she gave to the American ABC News network yesterday, Sunday, in which she did not rule out “that there will be consequences for Israel if it continues to carry out its military storming of the city of Rafah.” It is a remarkable shift in the American position regarding the atrocities taking place in Gaza. Harris also said in that interview, “We have been clear in multiple conversations and in every way that any major military operation in Rafah would be a grave mistake,” and that her government “continues to consider the humanitarian situation in Gaza as one of its priorities,” because it studied the maps and found that there is no A place for a million and a half people to go.

These Arab media outlets also cited, to reinforce their position on the emergence of signs of a change in the American position on “Israel”, the statements of US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken during his visit to Tel Aviv last Friday, during his meeting with the Prime Minister of the Israeli entity, Benjamin Netanyahu, and his participation in the Israeli War Council meeting. , in which "Israeli leaders warned" of the dangers of the attack on Rafah and the lack of a plan for the day after the Gaza war.

What was most striking in Blinken’s statements, as reported by the Axios website, was that the attack on Rafah “will not achieve the goal that Israel seeks” and threatens to isolate it from the world, and that “Israel’s” security and status in the world are at risk, and that it will face a major rebellion. It cannot deal with it if it does not have a clear plan for the day after the war, and without it, it will remain stuck in Gaza.

The American “concern” about the Rafah invasion is not due to the lack of a place for the Palestinians to take refuge, as Harris says, but rather the reason for the concern is that Harris and the Biden administration have become convinced that the military option has failed to eliminate the resistance in Gaza, and that insisting on this option As is the position of the Prime Minister of the Israeli entity, Benjamin Netanyahu, it will take years, as stated in a US intelligence report, which will lead to the erosion of the credibility and image of the American administration before its people, before world public opinion, and before international forums.

The US Defense Department still does not have a plan on how to implement US President Joe Biden's initiative to build a floating pier without creating a security threat for US troops or third-party workers, NBC News reported, citing US officials. The report added that US military officials are also discussing who will guard and inspect the trucks once they reach Gaza, and who will transport supplies to and from distribution points.

US officials told NBC News that Israel is considering using international Private Military Companies (PMCs) to secure the soon-to-be-established American dock in the Gaza Strip. A former US official and two current US officials told NBC News that "Israel" had already approached several security companies, suggesting to US officials that other countries pay the "hefty" price of the private military contractors. Only "some" US officials have expressed resistance to the idea of PMCs landing in the Gaza Strip, particularly if those contractors were of American nationality. It is noteworthy that in early March, Sigrid Kaag, the UN aid coordinator for the Gaza Strip, emphasized that delivering humanitarian supplies to Gaza by airdrops or sea cannot sufficiently substitute land deliveries. She stressed that the international community must "flood the market in Gaza with humanitarian goods" and "re-energize the private sector" so more commercial goods can enter to meet civilians' needs.

US Senator Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen, commenting on scenes broadcast by Al Jazeera of an Israeli march showing the targeting of four young men in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip , said that an independent review should be conducted and there should be no confidence in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu , whose government should be subject to investigation. Van Hollen's statements came during an interview with the American channel NBC, during which it showed a video broadcast by Al Jazeera showing the killing of young men in Khan Yunis, where Van Hollen, commenting on the pictures, said that "the scene is horrific" and stresses the need to investigate the Netanyahu government's management of the war, and a review should be conducted. Independent and distrustful of Netanyahu.

Van Hollen said that this video was disturbing and disturbing and shows that the United States should look more closely into the claims of the Netanyahu government. He added, “In my opinion, we should conduct independent investigations and not accept what the Netanyahu government said about what happened.” The Senator believes that for this reason they have been demanding for some time the implementation of Memorandum No. 20 from the National Security Office, stipulating that in order for military aid to be provided to countries like Israel, they must submit written declarations of their commitment to international law and that there should not be random provision of this aid in this way.

NBC also quoted the Israeli army as investigating the circumstances of the video published by Al Jazeera, and said that the area shown in the video is an active operations area. The Israeli Broadcasting Authority said that after examining scenes broadcast by Al Jazeera targeting 4 young men in Khan Yunis, it was found that they were from a terrorist cell. The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation report did not provide any evidence that the four young men were armed or linked to military activity. Al Jazeera had obtained scenes from an Israeli drone showing the targeting of Palestinian civilians in the Al-Sika area in Khan Yunis, south of the Gaza Strip.

The scenes were taken from a drone that was shot down in Khan Yunis at the beginning of last February. The exclusive scenes show an Israeli drone pursuing 4 young civilians and targeting them with several missiles, then targeting those who survived the initial bombing with other missiles.

Operation Iron Swords - By the Numbers

• 74,694 Gazans injured, 28% adult male
• 45,000 bombs dropped in Gaza
• 40,000 Gazans killed, including buried under rubble
• 33,000 Gaza targets attacked
• 32,700 Gazans martyred
• 20,528 Palestinians in Israeli prisons [Haaretz, 20 Mar 2024]
• 15,000 rocket launched from Gaza
• 14,793 Israelis were injured [i24 TV]
• 13,430 Gazan children martyred
• 13,000 HAMAS combatants killed [N12]
• 12,000 HAMAS combatants killed [IDF]
• 11,000 arrested by Israelis in the West Bank in 2023
• 9,000 Palestinians in Israeli prisons
• 9,000 IDF psychological assistance
• 9,000 Gazan women martyred
• 8,000 Gazans missing under the rubble
• 7,740 arrested by Israelis in the West Bank since Oct.7th
• 6,000 HAMAS combatants killed [HAMAS]
• 5,500 IDF wounded [reports]
• 4,750 West Bank Palestinians wounded
• 3,484 administrative detainees
• 3,600 wanted persons arrested throughout Judea and Samaria
• 3,079 IDF wounded [IDF]
• 1,609 terrorists killed on the first day
• 1,600 wanted persons arrested throughout Judea and Samaria affiliated with Hamas
• 1,160 Israelis killed on the first day
• 595 Israeli officers and soldiers killed
• 433 West Bank Palestinians martyred
• 252 Israeli officers and soldiers killed in Gaza
• 222 Hezbollah fighters killed in Lebanon
• 126 people recovered, including 91 Israelis, 11 bodies, and 24 foreign workers
• 116 living hostages in Palestinian custody
• 50 civilians killed in Lebanon
• 29 IDF deaths were caused by "friendly fire"
• 15 Israelis killed in the West Bank and Israel

Many of these numbers fluctate, up and down, with no apparent explanation. This list records the highest number reliably reported for each matter, under the theory that reality with catch up with reports, as is relentlessly the case.